Gondolas offer a romantic night in Oakland

OAKLAND, Calif. -- A sleek, shiny black gondola glides through the water as the gondolier serenades his passengers with a soft rendition of "Santa Lucia" and the skyline of Oakland passes by.

Oakland? Yes, a city not often associated with romance offers some of the most authentic gondola rides this side of Venice.

They're among the surprises to be found in East Bay, an area across the bay from San Francisco that includes Oakland, Berkeley and smaller towns such as Vallejo and Pleasanton.

Angelino Fischer and his wife, April Quinn, started Gondola Servizio on Oakland's Lake Merritt 2 1/2 years ago. Their customers are often couples looking for a little romance, and more than one young man has popped the question in one of Fischer's gondolas.

Fischer says his four gondolas are all hand-crafted and authentic, brought over from Venice and worth in the neighborhood of $20,000 apiece.

The cruises last about an hour and are offered year-round, day and night. The night cruises are popular because the gondolas are lit by lantern.

Costs begin at $55 per couple. For more information, call 510-663-6603 or go to www gondolaservizio.com.

Another reason to visit Oakland is Jack London Square, a 12-block entertainment district on the Oakland waterfront at Broadway and Embarcadero. Besides some interesting historical attractions, the square features 15 restaurants, a cinema, Yoshi's Jazz House and numerous shops and boutiques.

The square is named for the author, who was born in San Francisco and moved to Oakland as a boy. London spent a good deal of time on Oakland's waterfront in the 1880s, including a tavern there called Heinold's First & Last Chance Saloon. The saloon owner is said to have bought London a Webster's dictionary, which the boy studied at the bar.

Today, the tiny, 121-year-old saloon sits like an anachronism on the modern-looking square, still serving customers. About two-thirds of the interior slants downhill, a result of the 1906 earthquake. Stop in and say hello to owner Carol Brookman, who will gladly elaborate on the saloon's history (phone 510-839-6761, www.firstandlastchance.com). Heinold's recently was named a National Literary Landmark and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Sitting near the saloon is a log cabin where London spent a winter during the Yukon Gold Rush of 1897. In truth, half the cabin is on Jack London Square; the other half is in Dawson in the Yukon, a result of a compromise reached when both towns wanted the cabin.

For more history, take a tour of the USS Potomac and learn the fascinating story behind the demise and resurrection of Franklin D. Roosevelt's "floating White House." The former presidential yacht is now moored on the Oakland riverfront at the edge of Jack London Square. Roosevelt appropriated the all-steel Potomac for his use rather than the all-wood Sequoia, which was the yacht used by predecessor Herbert Hoover, because FDR had a consuming fear of fire related to a childhood incident.

The 165-foot ship was a favorite getaway for FDR, in part because he loved to throw a fishing line into the water and partly because he hated the restrictive menu at the White House and could have the Potomac's chef cook him what he wanted. Eleanor Roosevelt never spent a night on the ship because she had her own fear -- a fear of drowning, also related to a childhood incident.

After Roosevelt's death in 1945, the Potomac began a long decline. It passed through several owners, including Elvis Presley, and eventually was seized in San Francisco Bay in 1980 when it was used as a front in a drug-smuggling operation. Soon thereafter, the ship sank when its hull was pierced. Two weeks later, it was refloated and sold at auction to the Port of Oakland for $15,000. As part of a $5 million restoration, the guts were scrapped, and now the vessel has been re-created to look almost exactly as it did in 1939.

Just south of Oakland is Alameda, home to the aircraft carrier USS Hornet. Having completed a stellar military career in which it became one of the most decorated ships in naval history, the Hornet is now a museum -- a really large museum.

The Hornet was commissioned from 1943 to 1970. In World War II it carried 3,500 crewmen and up to 103 aircraft and destroyed 1,410 enemy aircraft.

During the Cold War, it tracked Soviet submarines, and then it had its most proud moment in 1969: The Hornet was the carrier that recovered Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins after their mission to the moon. Armstrong's first steps onto the Hornet -- his first steps after returning to Earth -- are outlined on the carrier's deck, allowing visitors to walk where Armstrong walked.

If you go...

Jack London Square: 510-814-6000, www.jacklondonsquare.com The Waterfront Plaza Hotel (800-729-3638, www.waterfrontplaza.com) is on the square, and three other hotels are within two miles. The square is 10 minutes from Oakland International Airport and is accessible from San Francisco by rapid transit (BART) and the Alameda/ Oakland Ferry (510-522-3300, www.eastbayferry.com).

USS Potomac: 510-627-1502; www.usspotomac.org; e-mail usspotomac@aol.com. Dockside tours are $3 for adults (18-59), $2 seniors and $1 youths (6-17). Cruises range from $15 to $30 per person.

USS Hornet: 510-521-8448; www.uss-hornet.org (new site, not yet in operation). Admission is $12 for adults, $10 for older students and military, $5 for ages 5-18.

Elsewhere in East Bay: For small-town flavor outside San Francisco and Oakland, visit Pleasanton, which features a Western-style Main Street lined with storefronts dating from the late 1800s and early 1900s. Children will enjoy a ride on the Niles Canyon Heritage Railway, which departs from nearby Sunol on Sundays for a one-hour trip through the canyon's green hills.

Farther north in East Bay is Vallejo, the state's first capital, where visitors can take a free factory tour at the Herman Goelitz Candy Co., maker of Jelly Belly jelly beans; visit Six Flags Marine World; play golf at Hiddenbrooke, a stop on the LPGA tour; and tour the Mare Island Naval Shipyard. San Francisco is accessible from Vallejo by the BayLink Ferry, 877-643-3779, www.baylinkferry.com.

More information: Oakland Convention & Visitors Bureau, 510-839-9000, www.oaklandcvb.com; Vallejo CVB, 800-482-5535; www.visitvallejo.com; Tri-Valley CVB, 888-874-9253, www.trivalleycvb.com

Add P-I Getaways headlines to